Celebrity Apprentice

Donald Trump Is Still an Executive Producer on Celebrity Apprentice

The epic saga of NBC’s relationship with Donald Trump continues. The president-elect abdicated his role as host of The Celebrity Apprentice last year as he embarked on his political campaign, and last summer, the network very publicly dumped the mogul after he made racist comments about Mexicans during his campaign announcement. But the question of what sort of continuing role Trump might have with the series has remained an open question—until now.

According to Variety, MGM has confirmed that Trump will remain an executive producer role on the series, which has now been re-branded as The New Celebrity Apprentice—with newly minted host Arnold Schwarzenegger. Per Variety, Trump’s name will appear after NBC president Mark Burnett’s in the show’s opening credits, but before Schwarzenegger’s—and he will continue to receive payment for the show. “It’s unclear what his per-episode fee is,” Variety reports, “but it is likely to be in the low five-figures, at minimum.” (Variety clarified that payments will come from MGM, not NBC, which declined to comment on the story.)

Trump and NBC’s relationship has been an ongoing source of ire—especially for Burnett, who has been forced to clarify multiple times that he is not a Trump supporter amid accounts that the old Apprentice set was the site of rampant sexism. (According to Variety, though, “Burnett met with Trump in New York this week, and a knowledgeable source said he is contributing to the Trump inauguration planning effort led by Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, the veteran New York event maven known for presiding over the glitzy Met Ball for a decade.”)

Six former Apprentice contestants have disavowed Trump, while numerous harrowing stories poured in from other former contestants and crew members in the wake of the Access Hollywood video that leaked in October—in which Trump made his infamous “grab them by the p**sy” comment. (NBC ended up parting ways with then Today host Billy Bush as well, after the video surfaced.)

And—deep breath—there’s also Matt Lauer’s infamous September interview with Trump, which was widely criticized for being too soft on the candidate. Just this week, Lauer gave it another shot, pressing Trump on his ongoing addiction to Twitter feuds—including an ongoing one with yet another famous NBC property, Saturday Night Live.

So, suffice it to say, NBC’s relationship with Trump is . . . complicated. As are the implications of Trump continuing to make money from the show even as president-elect and, soon, president. As Variety points out, other sitting presidents have published books during their tenure—and received royalties. Then again, when it comes to Trump, there’s really no shortage of conflicts anyway.

The New Celebrity Apprentice will premiere on January 2 on NBC.

V.F. HWD has reached out to NBC, MGM, and Mark Burnett. We will update this post accordingly.